() — (bound form) fear; terror; frightening

Definition

怖 is a bound form, almost always paired with 恐 to mean 'fear / terror' — as in 恐怖 (scary, horror) or 恐怖主义 (terrorism). It does not stand alone.

bound form
fearterrorfrightening

Examples

  • Zhè bù diàn yǐng hěn kǒng bù.
    This movie is very scary.
  • Nà ge dì fāng ràng rén gǎn dào kě bù.
    That place makes people feel horrible.
  • Kǒng bù zhǔ yì wēi xié shì jiè hé píng.
    Terrorism threatens world peace.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
Written in full asxīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
Same sound today

怖 is made of 忄, the heart, and 布, which gives the sound. The heart side shows fear.

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